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Methodist-Catholic Dialogue Commission Publishes New Document ‘We Believe in One God’

December 10, 2025December 10, 2025meorome

We Believe in One God: 60 years of Methodists and Catholics walking together

“A record of hope and a call to deeper communion”

‘We believe in One God’ is the title of a new publication by the Catholic Church and the World Methodist Council, detailing progress made over the past six decades towards full visible unity between the two Christian world communions.

Printed by the Vatican Publishing House as part of an ecumenical series, the volume draws together the results of 11 reports produced by the Methodist-Roman Catholic International Commission (MERCIC) since their formal dialogue began back in 1967. These reports, named after the cities in which they were presented to the World Methodist Conference, explore topics such as baptism, holiness, Scripture and tradition, Eucharist, nature and mission of the church and the call to visible communion.

In the preface, the new volume, compiled by the joint commission with the assistance of the Vatican’s Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity and the Methodist Ecumenical Office Rome, defines itself as “both a record of hope and a call to deeper communion.” During the year in which Christians mark the 1,700^th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea – the first attempt to reach consensus amongst the early Christian communities – the publication is designed as “a gift to all the churches, as they affirm their faith in the Triune God and reflect on the next stages of the quest for Christian unity.”

Fostering mutual respect and trust

Central to understanding the Methodist-Catholic dialogue is the fact that there is no history of formal separation between these two churches, with Methodism dating its origins as a revival movement within the Church of England in the mid-18^th century. Nevertheless, as the publication reveals in its nearly 90 pages, “division is real,” requiring “healing of memories, acknowledgment of past wrongs and the retelling of histories to honour victims and foster mutual respect and trust.”

The language of ‘We Believe in One God’ seeks to do exactly that, setting out in a clear and concise way, the many shared convictions, as well as remaining differences of perspective on Trinitarian faith, on the nature and mission of the church, and on the foundations for living a holy Christian life. While not shying away from the difficult questions of doctrine, the sacraments or the structures of authority and decision making, the authors stress that “we have much to learn from each other’s structures of oversight.”

On the central question of the Eucharist, they note that there has been “remarkable convergence,” with Methodists increasingly “recognising that the Lord’s Table belongs to the fulness of Christian worship, while Catholics are appreciating the fundamental importance of preaching the Word.” Significantly, they reaffirm that both Methodists and Catholics “welcome one another to attend their celebrations of the Eucharist” and although they are not in agreement over admission to Holy Communion, they encourage believers “to make the fullest use of the provisions in their ecumenical legislation.”

Other issues, including the ordination of women, same-sex marriage, contraception and abortion, are raised in a thoughtful way, highlighting the need for further study in order to find paths forward to a deeper consensus. In recommitting to the dialogue and reaffirming a “confidence in God’s providential leading,” the new publication provides a summary of the fruits of the past 60 years, while offering important signs of hope for the future of the ecumenical journey.

Download the document in PDF format (29 MB)

Photo: Book cover, “We Believe in One God: 60 Years of Methodists and Catholics Walking Together,” ISBN 978-88-266-1052-8, €18.00, Libreria Editrice Vaticana, www.libreriaeditricevaticana.va

Videos from WMC Webinars on 1700th Anniversary of the Council of Nicaea

April 2, 2025April 2, 2025meorome

The 1700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea is being marked in 2025 as an important commemoration of the common Christian faith shared among the various Christian confessions. In March 2025, the World Methodist Council through an ad-hoc committee chaired by former WMC vice president Ms. Gillian Kingston organized three webinars to reflect on the Council of Nicaea and its importance for the worldwide Methodist/Wesleyan family. The series “A Wesleyan Response to Nicaea: Reflections on Faith, Unity, and Mission” had three regional foci – the Americas, Asia and the Pacific, and Africa and Europe.

Asia and the Pacific

The webinar was held on 3 March 2025.

Speakers:

Prof. Te Aroha Rountree, Methodist Church in New Zealand Te Hāhi Weteriana o Aotearoa, Trinity Methodist Theological College, Auckland, New Zealand
Rev. James Bhagwan, Methodist Church in Fiji, General Secretary of the Pacific Conference of Churches
Rev. Dr. Hermen Shastri, Methodist Church Malaysia, former vice moderator of the WCC Faith and Order Commission
Rev. Dr. Lisette Tapia Raquel, The United Methodist Church, Union Theological Seminary, Manila, Philippines

Moderator: Revd Dr Seferosa Carroll, Uniting Church in Australia, United Theological College, North Parramatta, Australia

The Americas

The webinar was held on 4 March 2025.

Speakers:

Rev. Dr. Blanches de Paula, Methodist Church Brazil, Methodist University, Sao Paulo,Brazil
Rev. Dr. Pablo Rubén Andiñach, Methodist Church Argentina, Universidad del Centro Educativo Latinoamericano, Rosario, Argentina
Prof. Sarah Lancaster, The United Methodist Church, Methodist Theological School in Ohio, Columbus, OH, USA
Prof. Gladson Jothanna, Church of South India, Drew University, Madison, NJ, USA

Moderator: Rev. Dr. Edgardo Colon-Emeric, The United Methodist Church, Duke Divinity School, Durham, NC, USA

Africa and Europe

The webinar was held on 18 March 2025.

Speakers:

Rev. Jackline Makena, Methodist Church Kenya, St. Paul University, Limuru, Kenya
Prof. Simangaliso R. Kumalo, Methodist Church Southern Africa, University of Kwazulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, SA
Rev. Dr. Jane Leach, Methodist Church Britain, Wesley House, Cambridge
Rev. Dr. Sergei Nikolaev, The United Methodist Church, Moscow Theological Seminary, Moscow, Russia

Moderator: Revd Dr Martin Mujinga, Methodist Church Zimbabwe, Africa Methodist Council, Accra, Ghana

The Methodist Ecumenical Office Rome provided technical support for the webinar series.

Photo by A. Hilbert/WCC

Methodist and Reformed Offices Host Luncheon for Synod Fraternal Delegates

October 15, 2024October 29, 2024meorome

The Methodist Ecumenical Office Rome and the Reformed Churches Ecumencial Office in Rome hosted a luncheon on 11 October 2024 for the fraternal delegates to the 16th Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, commonly known as the Synod on Synodality. In addition to the delegates from Protestant and Orthodox churches, the luncheon also included H.Em. Cardinal Mario Grech and Sr. Nathalie Becquart XMCJ from the General Secretariat of the Synod, Brothers Alois, Matthew, and Richard from the Taize Community, Ms. Margaret Karram from the Focolare Movement, Pastor Luca Baratto from the Federation of Protestant Churches in Italy, and Fr. James Loughran from Centro Pro Unione. Also in attendance was H.E. Mons. Flavio Pace and Fr. Martin Browne OSB from the Vatican’s Dicastery for the Promoting Christian Unity.

The luncheon was held in Hotel Casa Valdese near the Vatican. The Rev. Matthew A. Laferty, director of the Methodist Ecumenical Office Rome, noted that Casa Valdese is one place in Rome where the Methodists and Reformed meet, as the hotel is owned by the Methodist-Waldensian Church in Italy, a union of Methodist and Reformed churches.

As the luncheon was held on the 62nd anniversary of the opening of the Second Vatican Council, Rev. Laferty read a short excerpt from Methodist Observer at Vatican II by Albert C. Outler. Outler was one of the official Methodist observers to the Second Vatican Council. Rev. Laferty concluded with Outler’s words:

What could come of such a Church in council? Some of us expected very little. None of us foresaw what actually happened.

Rev. Laferty said the Synod on Synodality holds the same sentiment and hoped that the Synod would positively impact the ecumenical movement like the Second Vatican Council.

Rev. Tara Curlewis, the ecumenical liaison officer of the Reformed Churches Ecumenical Office, also welcomed the guests and thanked them for their contributions to the Synod. She discussed how the Synod is already guiding the work of Christian unity and pointing us to deeper communion. She offered a blessing before the meal.

Photo gallery: Various photos from the luncheon. Photos by Tara Curlewis/WCRC.

Photo top: Rev. Laferty, Cardinal Mario Grech, Sr. Nathalie Becquart, Rev. Curlewis. Photo by Dirk Lange/LWF.

Videos from Methodist-Catholic International Dialogue Meeting in Korea

September 28, 2024October 18, 2024meorome

Members of the Methodist-Roman Catholic International Commission, the official theological dialogue commission between the World Methodist Council and the Roman Catholic Church, produced short videos about the commission’s work and its meeting agenda at the commission’s last meeting in Pocheon, Korea, from 22-27 September 2024.

The Rev. Dr. Edgardo Colón-Emeric, Methodist co-chair of the Methodist-Roman Catholic International Commission (MERCIC), spoke about his hopes for MERCIC’s work as the Commission begans its deliberations on 23 September 2024

Bishop Shane Mackinlay, Catholic co-chair of the Methodist-Roman Catholic International Commission (MERCIC), spoke about how the Catholic Church’s Synod on Synodality and the 1700th anniversary of the Nicene Creed shaped the Commission’s work.

Sister Prof. Mary Sylvia Nwachukwu DDL speaks about her experience of the Methodist-Catholic international dialogue and the importance of the dialogue’s meeting in Korea.

Fr. Gerard Kelly shares about the importance of the Methodist-Catholic international dialogue’s project to re-synthesize and harvest the dialogue’s 11 reports into a single published text similar to the dialogue’s 2010 document “Together To Holiness”.

Prof. Dr. Catherine Clifford links her participation in Methodist-Catholic international dialogue and Methodist theology of conferencing, connectionalism, and lay participation as important insights for the 16th Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops

The Rev. Dr. Hermen Shastri talks about unity as primary to our Christian vocation and the Methodist-Roman Catholic International Commission’s work in living this vocation.

The Rev. Prof. Glen O’Brien speaks about the Methodist-Catholic international dialogue moving Catholics and Methodists toward greater unity in Christ.

The Rev. Prof. Danny Pilario CM speaks about his learnings of mission and an ‘ecumenism of blood’ from the Korean Catholic and Methodist churches.

Dr. Jung Choi speaks about Methodist-Catholic dialogue as a journey in unity in Christ.

The Rev. Matthew A. Laferty offers the final video from this year’s meeting in Seoul, Korea, of the Methodist-Roman Catholic International Commission. He describes the urgency of Christian unity in a divided world.